Northern Ireland’s unionist parties form coalition to oppose Brexit protocol | Northern Irish Politics

Four competing unitary parties in northern Ireland They formed an alliance to fight the Brexit protocol, issuing a joint statement weeks after the DUP threatened to quit Stormont if it was not scrapped.

It is seen as an important attempt to show that the hardline position of the DUP has not been isolated before the expected publication by the European Union of new proposals to address the UK’s demands to Significantly rewritten protocol.

In their statement, they warned of the «significant damage» the protocol has done to Northern Ireland and say good relations with Ireland and the EU cannot be achieved as long as the region is subject to EU laws, which are the cornerstone of the Protocol.

It was signed by the DUP, Ulster Unionist Party, the Traditional Unionist Voice and the Progressive Unionist Party.

“The massive disruption to trade in the supply of goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland has caused unnecessary disruption to the supply chain and unacceptable and unsustainable levels of bureaucracy and barriers to trade within our country.

«The resulting diversion and reorientation of trade damages Northern Ireland’s standing in the UK and will lead to an economic realignment which is unacceptable,» they said.

The Democratic Unionist Party, whose popularity has plummeted in the opinion polls, Threatened to relinquish executive power in Stormont earlier this month unless there were fundamental changes to the protocol.

It said it would do so «within weeks» and was condemned by rival parties, including some from the union side.

The protocol was suspended in parts after the UK unilaterally decided to do so grace period extension To examine goods transiting the Irish Sea from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

But the EU has said it will not take retaliatory measures and is expected to present new proposals to meet the UK’s demands after next week’s Conservative Party conference.

The four parties warned that they could only uphold the protocol if the European Union and the United Kingdom canceled all inspections of goods, effectively dismantling the arrangements. He called for a «proportional and equitable solution» to restore «unrestricted trade» in the UK’s internal market.

Some see the DUP’s position as an attempt to position itself in the Stormont election after a turbulent summer that included three changes at the party’s head. Sir Geoffrey Donaldson, the current leader, has made a series of high-profile media appearances in the past two weeks, including Write to the speaker From the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, attached to a copy of the Good Friday Peace Agreement.